The importance of representative government

I think Rep. Mike McIntyre “Member of Congress” is a good and respectable person. However, I have criticized his promotions of local wasteful government projects. The appearance of payoffs by political operatives for party loyalty hangs over this spending. It also smacks of pandering to special interests for votes.

More important, his persistent affiliation with the clearly leftist “progressive” movement now controlling the Democrat Party in Washington causes distrust. If he is truly conservative, why does he belong to that party—one that has determinedly rammed their unwanted, destructive agenda through the legislative process against the will of most Americans?

Still, I admire Mr. McIntyre’s attention to his constituent’s concerns. For example, recently I wrote to him alarmed about the U. S. Environmental Protection Agency power grab. In April, 2009 the EPA released its “endangerment finding” that so-called “greenhouse gases” threaten our health and “welfare.” Because environmental radicals want to force their man-caused “global warming” agenda, the implications of this would be devastating to our economy; e.g. carbon dioxide, necessary for life, will likely be on the gases-list.

Rep. McIntyre sent me a full-page letter explaining the House bills related to this and his position on the issue. The EPA finding, he wrote, “does not immediately place any restrictions on motor vehicles or any other industries.” To his credit, he voted against H.R.2454 that would “cap carbon emissions over the summer.” Wisely, McIntyre recognized that EPA actions will surely increase our electric bills and “have implications on a wider scale.”

McIntyre’s letter included a long paragraph describing several bills pending in the House that would “reevaluate the finding,” disapprove the EPA rule, prevent these gases from being regulated under the Clean Air Act and amend the Act to prohibit specific emissions from regulation. I was glad to know this. Something must be done to prevent the EPA from further damaging our economy. No wonder business people aren’t investing; they don’t yet know what negative, costly impacts the destructive legislation passed, rules mandated and those planned will have on their economic future—and that of us all.

I thanked Rep. McIntyre for his thoughtful, informative response to my concern about this. I asked him to keep me posted, and do the right thing in the interest of all Americans—something we should frequently demand from our elected representatives, but too often fail to do.

Chamber Censuring Congressional Contest

The Chamber of Commerce in Wilmington is continuing to find ways to irritate the public by creating a monopoly of television coverage for the proposed Pantano/McIntyre debate.   Pantano formally requested that all local TV stations be allowed to cover the event, the chamber refuses even though McIntyre also joined the request.  WECT and WWAY are both dues paying Chamber members.

Connie Majure-Rhett, President and CEO of the Chamber, says she never called WWAY-TV because she assumed the station wouldn’t be interested in participating. WWAY-TV General Manager Andy Combs contacted Majure-Rhett to discuss allowing the station to incorporate another anchor to co-host and air the debate. She said she had spoken with WECT-TV General Manager Gary McNair, and they would not be able to accommodate the request.

Majure-Rhett has another embarrassing episode on her hands after first trying to pass off a $40 per person entry fee to the event.  How the heck do you ASSUME that a local television station wouldn’t want to cover a major news event like this????  More here at WWAY, but the short version is, YOU GOTTA BE KIDDING ME!